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Purpose and problem The article compared the perceptions of physicians and pharmaceutical sales representatives PSRs toward direct to consumer advertising DTCA The problems analyzed included whether DTCA influenced specific prescriptions and whether it increased physician compliance as perceived by physicians and PSRs Summary of concepts DTCA has been a controversial marketing technique employed by big pharmaceutical companies Its roots could be traced back to 1997 when the Food and Drug Administration relaxed the regulation regarding advertisement of prescription medications Expenditures increased with a stated aim of educating the consumers yet with a hidden agenda of higher stock returns In the article the physicians surveyed negatively viewed DTCA and indicated that it does not result in better informed patients however the PSRs have the opposite perception Both groups also disagree on whether DTCA results in an increase in patients request for a specific prescription Within those who would have requested for a specific prescription the patients would most likely cite DTCA as a source and the physician would more than likely comply with the request The authors discussed the push and pull communication strategy used by the pharmaceutical companies to market their products In this strategy the pharmaceutical companies in collaboration with the PSRs and the physicians push the information to the patients while at the same time the pull strategy of DTCA leads the consumers to advocate for the companies products in the form of specific medication requests from the physiciansStrengths The article has exposed the diverging views between the physicians and PSRs which could aid in improving patient safety as pharmaceutical companies formulate an effective communication strategy between the two groups It clearly explained the dynamics at play between the drug companies and their marketing efforts the PSRs the physicians and the consumers through the push-pull communication strategy modelWeaknesses The study has a small sample size and it is limited within

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